1st process step:
The first step into this project was to draw different versions of myself. I went into my instagram and searched for potential images that show completely different styles and dynamics to draw. Then I sketched them on my sketchbook, which can be seen from the images above. The sketches were in much details, but still shows important features of myself, since I would render them later into a completely different style, it didn’t really matter if they were really nicely drawn and realistic.
2nd process step:
Then I put the sketches into photoshop and started to render the photos into Ukiyo-e style drawings, which is a traditional form of Japanese art. I have had experiences with Ukiyo-e paintings in the past, and my high school art research paper was also based on this form of art. Therefore, I had a lot of prior knowledge about this art form. I still kept the same clothes, but focused more on rendering the facial features, as they are what define Ukiyo-e, elongated faces, small and slanted eyes, small lips with lower lip bigger than the upper lip as well as extremely long noses. I also put a lot of effort in defining the folds in the clothes, and thin hair strokes to imitate the style used in Ukiyo-e art. I made two drawings for each portraits, which shows slight movements in the eyes or mouths, as my goal was to make a stop motion video that shows facial movements. I tried to make the colors cohesive, however still gives out completely different vibes for each set of portraits.
3rd process step:
When I finished rendering all the portraits, I made sure each set had the same size. I then started to warp the portraits. Prior to warping the portraits, I went to Chinatown to search for cylindrical mirrors, however I couldn’t find them anywhere. The I decided on using mirror acrylic sheets and plastic cylindrical tubes, and sticking the sheet around the tube. I measured the diameter of the tube and used the measurement as a base to warp my portraits. Which are the red circles shown above. I would put the cylindrical mirror I made on top of my laptop screen from time to time to check if the warping was right, if I needed to adjust anything. I tried my best to align each set of the portraits, however I soon realized it was near impossible. But I still managed to make them as aligned as possible. Then used the stop motion tool in photoshop and made a video from all the warped portraits.
Final product:
I used my ipad to play the stop motion video and placed the cylindrical mirror on top of the ipad.
Reflection:
Ever since I was a child, when I looked at myself in a mirror, I have been wondering if there is another world, a different space and dimension beyond that reflection of mine. If thats just another person that looked exactly like me, but different. A person living in another space, who has a different style and life from my. Therefore, I wanted to express this wonder through this project. I have come up with other different ideas to display this project, such as using a projector and suspend it from the ceiling to project into a mirror, however as I was experimenting on that technique, I realized I could barely see the projections through a mirror. Also, if I wanted to do something like that, I had to dim the lights for the projection to show, which loses the point of me using a mirror in the first place. Then I looked into cylindrical mirror art, and thought it was a fun way to show my ideas in this project. And I wanted to do it as a stop motion. The process was not easy, it was a lot of work, a lot of trial and error and a lot of “try to find the right material”, however I still managed to do it. The final product could be bigger if I had a TV tablet and a bigger cylindrical mirror, however I think overall, it came out well and as what I expected. There are definitely space for improvement, however after going through the struggles, I could say I am satisfied with my work.
